How to Spot a Cult With Rick Alan Ross
In this issue, we discussed sects: how they work, how you define them, what it feels like to be in one, and how to get out of it. To that end, we spoke with the writer Rebecca Stott, whose book In the Days of the Rain: Father, Daughter, Cult details her childhood in The Exceptional Brothers, a cult that believed Satan ruled the world. We also spoke with Rick Alan Ross, founder and CEO of The Cult Education Institute . And we spoke to Elizabeth Yuko, a bioethics specialist and journalist who has written extensively about cults.
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Discussed in this episode
- Christy McNichol’s / Jimmy McNichol’s car blinded by the light
- Exceptional brothers
- Why Rebecca Stott’s Family Left The Exclusive Brothers – The Aberdeen Incident
- Rick Alan Ross Institute of Cult Education
- Reform of thinking by Robert J. Lifton and the psychology of totalism
- Stephen Hassan Model BITE
- Continuum of influence
- Rolling Stone article by Elizabeth Yuko “Cult or Commune? How utopian communities become dangerous
- Holy Hell documentary
We have contacted any organizations mentioned by Rick Ross if he calls them a cult or says he has received complaints about them. We received responses from two organizations. Jehovah’s Witnesses declined to comment directly, but sent us the following links: Are Jehovah’s Witnesses a sect? Are Jehovah’s Witnesses an American Sect ?
We also heard from Landmark who commented in particular:
Landmark is a global personal and professional growth, learning and development company that offers programs and courses that empower and help people do what matters to them. Recognized for their cutting-edge material and methodology, Landmark programs enable people to achieve outstanding results in areas such as careers, relationships, productivity and overall quality of life. More than 2.4 million people in more than 20 countries have participated in Landmark programs, and Landmark is considered one of the leading companies in its field.
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